


One Last Day

by lostresidentevilpotter



Category: Fear the Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-18
Updated: 2019-07-18
Packaged: 2020-07-07 16:49:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19855642
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lostresidentevilpotter/pseuds/lostresidentevilpotter
Summary: Alicia gets the blood from the radiated walker on her face and assumes she’s been handed a death sentence. She enlists Al to help her cross a few things she wants to do off her list before her impending death. Or, my response to the events of 5x07. Alicia/Al.





	One Last Day

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! Rather than finishing my two other works, I wrote this up on a whim. This one’s actually pretty lighthearted despite what the summary may sound like. There’s some canon divergence because I’m ignoring the whole Logan thing, so they all just fly back to the factory with no problems. 
> 
> Though I selected no archive warnings apply, there’s a bit of talk about death, but that's about it. Also, since I finished this at 2 am and then immediately posted it, I bet there's some errors. But I'll catch those eventually lol. Hope you enjoy it!

Alicia doesn’t know how long death by radiation poisoning takes, particularly since the infected blood got in her mouth. So as far as she knows, she has mere days left before she withers up and dies.

Upon their return to the factory, Alicia digs up a pen and a piece of paper and scrawls down everything she wants to do before her untimely death. Some of the items are more ridiculous – if not downright impossible – than others. And since she doesn’t know how much time she has left, she also doesn’t know how many of these items she can squeeze in before she keels over. But once she completes her list, she goes back through and scratches out all the damn near impossible ones, like seeing the Eiffel Tower. She’s done with planes – and boats – so a trip across the Atlantic is not one she really wants to make. It’s a nice thought, though. Seeing Paris from the top of the Eiffel Tower.

Once all the impossible and ridiculous items are crossed off, Alicia rewrites the remaining items onto a separate sheet of paper and examines her revised list. Not too bad, though it’s nothing revolutionary. She can make these things happen before she dies, and that’s the important part. She just might need some help –

As if on cue, there’s a knock at Alicia’s bedroom door, and Alicia spins around in her desk chair before she calls, “It’s open.”

The door swings open, and Al pops her head in. Her eyebrows raise when her eyes land on the pen Alicia’s twirling around her fingers. “Dinner,” Al says. She pushes the door open a little further, so Alicia can see more than just her head, but Al doesn’t dare step inside without permission. “What’re you doing?”

“Oh,” Alicia says. She twists back around to pluck the piece of paper off her desk. She holds it up feebly and explains, “I made a list.”

“A list?”

“Yeah. Of things I want to do before I die.”

Al’s face falls. “Oh.”

Alicia manages a pained smile and nods. “I figured I better get going on it. I don’t know how fast the contaminated blood will kill me, you know?”

“Yeah,” Al mutters. She leans against the doorframe, crossing her arms over her chest. “I guess that’s pretty smart.”

Alicia stands, exhaling heavily, and she carefully folds her list and tucks it into her jacket. “So what’s for dinner?”

“John shot us a deer,” Al informs. “So Victor’s grilling, but June also made salads if deer’s not your thing.” Al shifts so her body blocks the doorway as Alicia tries to leave, forcing Alicia to take a step back. “You aren’t even going to show me your list?”

Alicia shrugs. “Why?”

“Maybe I can help.”

Alicia’s face flushes as she reaches back into her jacket for her list. “It was a lot longer,” Alicia mumbles, holding the piece of paper out to Al. “I had to make some cuts. It’s nothing really special. I figured we couldn’t find an easy way to Paris.”

Al cracks a smile and unfolds the list, skimming through it quickly. “We can make this happen,” Al declares. She hands the list back and steps aside to let Alicia through.

“You think I’ll have enough time?”

Al scoffs. “Alicia, we can cross most of those items off in one day if you want to.”

Alicia’s face brightens. “Wait, seriously?”

“Sure,” Al says. They fall into stride as they head for the dining room together. Al runs her hand through her hair and grins at Alicia. “We can go tomorrow. There are tons of great places to go hiking around here.”

“We’re starting with a hike?” Alicia questions.

“We better go early,” Al says. “Before it gets too hot.”

“You seriously want to help me?” Alicia asks. They stop walking just outside of the dining room, where they can already hear their friends chattering excitedly about the deer. Alicia looks up to meet Al’s gaze, and Al’s eyes are soft. Maybe there’s even a hint of sadness there.

“Of course,” Al says. “I’ll pack us a bag tonight, but be ready to wake up early.”

Al claps Alicia on the arm then ducks into the dining room, easily joining the ongoing conversation. Alicia lingers in the doorway for a bit, watching her friends hurry to set the table and pass bowls of salad around. June starts telling Al all the stuff she’s planning on growing in their garden, says she’s hoping they’ll have a great variety this summer. Victor’s just out back with Morgan and Luciana, grilling. John and Charlie help June finish up the preparation, and Alicia swallows hard. She slips away before anyone can notice she’s there and returns to her room, shutting the door quietly behind her.

She adds another item to her list and determines that Al’s right. If she plans this out properly, she should be able to cross a good handful of items off tomorrow. She reviews her initial list, all the impossible things she wishes she could do, but what she has is going to have to be good enough. Alicia gathers some of the things she’s going to need – a notebook, pens, envelopes, a book – and figures she’ll ask Al for help with some of the other things later.

Someone knocks on her door again. Alicia sighs and gets up to answer it, expecting maybe Morgan, but behind the door is Al.

“You were right behind me,” Al says. “What happened?”

“I came back,” Alicia says simply. “I had to get ready for tomorrow.”

“You need to eat,” Al says. “Or you’ll have no energy for tomorrow.”

Alicia chews on her lower lip. “I don’t think I can face them,” she admits. “They’re all so…happy.”

Al nods. “I can fix that.”

“What? How?” Alicia asks, but Al’s already taking off down the hall. Alicia’s not about to chase her down, so she returns to her desk and second guesses her list once more. Less than five minutes later, Al returns, balancing two plates and two bowls in her hands, a bottle of Coke under each arm. Alicia slides in her desk chair away from the desk so Al has some place to set everything down before she shatters their dishes.

“What are you doing?” Alicia questions.

“You don’t want to eat surrounded by everybody? Okay. Cool,” Al says. “So I brought dinner to you. I didn’t know what you wanted, so take your pick.”

Al grabs one of the bowls of salad and a Coke and lounges on Alicia’s bed as if this is something they do all the time. Al’s halfway through the bowl before Alicia has even touched anything. Al swallows her mouthful and waves her fork toward the desk.

“Eat something, Alicia,” Al instructs. “You’re going to regret it tomorrow if you don’t.”

Alicia rolls her eyes but picks up the plate with deer meat and potatoes and makes herself eat it, even though she isn’t very hungry. Alicia’s grateful Al doesn’t try to make conversation, at least until Alicia’s finished with her plate of food.

“You gonna eat that salad?” Al asks.

“No.”

Al smiles and reaches around Alicia to snatch the bowl for herself, not bothering to return to her spot in the bed. She plants her ass on the edge of Alicia’s desk and digs in as Alicia stares up at her from the desk chair. Al notices the staring but just nudges the second plate of meat and potatoes toward Alicia. Taking the hint, Alicia clears the second plate, too, because it’s actually pretty good. Al finishes the salad and stacks the bowl inside the first one, cracking the top off the bottle of Coke. She downs half of it, exhales, then pushes her hair out of her eyes.

“So, tell you what,” Al says. “I can get the camera, scissors, the gun, and the essentials. Everything else is on you, yeah?”

Alicia nods. “How early should I be up?”

Al grins. “Shoot for four.”

“Are we telling the others?”

Al laughs. “You let me handle that. Just don’t sleep through your alarm.”

Alicia doesn’t sleep through her alarm. She’s just getting to sleep two hours before it’s set to go off, and when it does, she bounces out of bed and gets her items packed into a backpack of her own. She takes extra clothes with her, just in case, and triple checks that she has everything before leaving her room. The moment she steps out, she collides with someone.

“Whoa, careful,” Al whispers, grasping onto Alicia’s shoulders. Though the hallway’s fairly dimly lit, Alicia doesn’t miss the way Al’s eyes rake down her body. “You’re going in that?”

“What’s wrong with it?” Alicia huffs. She puts her hands on her hips, raising her eyebrows.

Al smiles and shakes her head. “You’re gonna fry, that’s all.”

“Does that even matter?”

Al pauses. “Maybe not.”

So maybe Alicia’s wearing fairly short denim shorts and a low cut tank top. They’re going to be outside all day, it’s the middle of summer, and a sunburn is the least of Alicia’s problems. She has sweats and a light sweatshirt in her backpack in case it gets cold. And she’s wearing sturdy hiking boots and has her hair tied back. She’s all set. Al, of course, is wearing pants and more than one layer, but if Al has any sense at all, she’s got extra clothing in her backpack, too.

“So the others?” Alicia questions as they creep through the factory toward the back exit.

“I left a note on the kitchen table,” Al dismisses. “And I’ve got the keys to the Jeep, so they’ll figure it out pretty quickly.”

They collect their weapons from their holding spots in the laundry room then head to the Wrangler parked alongside the rest of their vehicles, including Al’s van. Al throws her backpack in the backseat with her rifle. She takes Alicia’s backpack and gun barrel from her and adds it to the back before doing a final mental check of their stuff. Extra ammunition. Can of gas. Both backpacks. Al’s pretty sure they’re good. Al motions for Alicia to get in the passenger’s seat as she climbs up into the front herself.

“How far are we going?” Alicia asks as she straps herself in.

Al grins and twists the key in the ignition. “Don’t worry about it,” Al says. “I know how to show a girl a good time.” Al laughs as Alicia blushes beet red then pops a CD into the CD player. “This is your _end of your life_ vacation day,” Al reminds. “Just enjoy the ride, sweetheart. Stop asking questions. I’m good at this kind of thing, believe it or not.”

“You’re good at _end of your life_ vacations?”

“I’m good at vacations, period.” Al speeds off and adds as an afterthought, “And I’m really good at dates, and this is practically the same kind of thing, right?”

“We’re on a date?”

Al shrugs. “More or less. We’re spending all day together so you can squeeze one last bit of fun out of life.”

“Maybe you weren’t my first choice,” Alicia teases. They hit a large bump that throws them around a bit, and Alicia laughs in surprise. Al’s driving with no sense of caution whatsoever, and Alicia thinks maybe she’s forgotten the Wrangler isn’t as strongly built as her van.

“What?” Al yelps. “Who would you have chosen instead? Huh?”

“Luciana.”

Al presses her lips together. “Alright, you’ve got me there.”

“But Luci would’ve been too sad. You know that one look she gets on her face?”

“Yeah,” Al agrees. “I promise to keep my sadness to myself.”

Alicia snorts. “Come on. Don’t act like you’re sad. We’re barely friends.”

“Yeah, but if everything goes right, after today we will be,” Al points out. “Shit. I left my sunglasses in my bag. Can you get them for me? The moment the sun comes up, I’ll be screwed.”

“Sunrise is like an hour away,” Alicia says. She twists around and grabs Al’s backpack anyway, plucking the sunglasses from the front pocket.

“We’ve got a two hour drive, honey,” Al says.

“Two hours?”

“I know a really good place,” Al promises. “You’ve got that list?”

“Of course.”

“I don’t really need it,” Al dismisses. “I memorized it last night.”

“I added something.”

Al grins. “I’m sure you’ll guide me along if I get too far off track.”

The two hour ride actually flies by, and they reach the spot just a little before seven a.m. Alicia gapes at the sight ahead of her as Al unbuttons her shirt and slips out of it, leaving her in a tank top. She ties it around her waist and rummages through her backpack until she finds a bottle of sunscreen.

“We’re hiking up _that_?” Alicia questions, pointing at what’s basically a mountain.

“Yep,” Al confirms. She slathers sunscreen up her arms and onto her neck and the exposed part of her chest.

“That’s a fucking mountain.”

“Basically,” Al agrees.

“Isn’t it too steep without gear?”

“Nah,” Al says. “We can do it in about an hour, if we haul ass. There’s a great view if you reach the top.” Al pulls her sunglasses from her face and hangs them from her tank top. Alicia realizes she’s staring straight at Al’s chest and tears her eyes away before Al can make fun of her for it, but Al just tosses her the bottle of sunscreen and says, “Can you get the back of my neck for me?”

Alicia hums and rubs sunscreen into the back of Al’s neck. She half expects Al to tell her to put sunscreen on herself, but Al just thanks her and puts the backpack on her back. She slings the rifle over her shoulder and jerks her head toward the mountain, but Alicia calls for her to wait and grudgingly begins rubbing sunscreen on.

“You’re taking forever,” Al complains. She snatches the bottle from Alicia and squirts a decent sized gob into her palm. She drops to her knees and quickly gets the sunscreen onto Alicia’s legs while Alicia works on her face. “You good?” Al asks.

“I think so.”

Al flashes a grin then pushes her sunglasses back onto her face. “Great. Let’s get moving.”

They’re halfway up the mountain when Alicia starts whining. “Could you have picked a harder place to hike?”

“Yeah,” Al says over her shoulder. “C’mon, Clark. Keep up.”

“My backpack’s heavy.”

Al laughs and stops a moment to let Alicia catch up. “It’s not that much farther,” Al lies. Alicia has eyes. She can see they’ve still got a ways to go. But Alicia just grunts and continues trying to keep up with Al. Before Alicia has the chance to die of thirst, Al hands her a water bottle even though Alicia didn’t ask. Frankly, she doesn’t know how much water Al packed, so she conserves as much as she can, but sweat drips down her face and neck, soaking into her tank top. And the sun is fucking brutal.

They make the final climb to the top, which Al has absolutely no problem with. Al stands at the top, hands on her hips, as she stares out at the view. After a few moments, she realizes Alicia hasn’t made it and returns to offer her a hand up. Alicia’s glad Al doesn’t make some snarky comment when she takes her hand and practically hauls her the rest of the way up. Alicia drops her backpack to the ground at the same time that Al does. They set the rifle and gun barrel aside, and Alicia realizes she hasn’t seen a single dead since the drive out here.

“Is this place really isolated or something?” Alicia wheezes. “There are, like, no dead out here.”

“The nearest town’s a few miles away,” Al says.

“How do you know that?” Alicia says.

Al hands her another bottle of water and smiles sadly. “I lived there.”

Alicia chokes on the water. She’d considered herself lucky to find out Al’s ridiculously long and hard to pronounce last name. Now she knows they’re only a few miles away from where Al used to live.

“Really?” Alicia says once she’s done coughing.

“Mm hmm. Childhood house, not my place after I moved out. I used to come here all the time with my brother.”

Alicia nods, unsure if she’s supposed to press for more information or not. Instead, she turns her eyes toward the cliff, and her jaw falls open. She’s staring out at a rather large lake, complete with a sandy beach, just a few hundred feet or so below them.

“Wow,” Alicia finally says.

“Yeah,” Al agrees. “It’s pretty nice.”

Al pushes her sunglasses up on top of her head and takes a seat on the ground next to her backpack. She’s prepared, pulling snacks and more water out. Alicia cautiously takes a seat near Al, stretching her legs out. She’s already getting some color, so she figures it’s probably best to get more sunscreen on. Al’s having the same thought, and they reapply sunscreen then eat. There’s a nice breeze, and it’s pretty shady up here. It’s nice.

“You were right,” Alicia says.

“I know,” Al replies, but adds, “about what, though?”

Alicia grins. “You know how to show a girl a good time.”

Al laughs. “Wouldn’t be the first time I’ve heard that.” She hums. “Where’s your list?”

“In the backpack,” Alicia says. “Why?”

“We finished the hike. Well, the important part of it, anyway. Shouldn’t you cross it off?”

“Is it that big a deal?” Alicia questions.

“Yes.”

Alicia smiles and pulls the list free. She finds her pen then scratches off the first item on the list.

~~_#1: Go for a hike_ ~~

“There,” Alicia says. She flips the list around to show Al. “I crossed it off.”

“Great,” Al says. She reaches into her own backpack and tosses something Alicia’s way. “Now get started on your next one.”

Alicia catches the item in her lap. It’s a polaroid camera. Alicia smiles to herself and nods, not trusting herself to verbally thank Al. She takes a picture of the view from the top of the mountain, shakes the picture until it develops, and holds it out to Al.

“You’re no photographer, that’s for sure,” Al quips.

“Shut up!” Alicia laughs, pushing at Al’s stomach. “Give it back.”

Al grins. “I think I’ll keep it for myself, actually.”

Alicia shakes her head but lets Al have the little picture of the beach and the lake. She takes another one for herself, and she doesn’t miss the way Al carefully stores the photograph in her backpack. Protecting it. The second picture comes out better.

“Here,” Alicia says, offering it to Al as well. “This one’s better.”

Al nods. “I agree,” she says. She tries to hand it back, but Alicia shakes her head.

“Keep it,” Alicia says. “I won’t have much use for them anyway.” Alicia hesitates, then murmurs, “And I know if anyone’s going to care about them, it’ll be you.”

Al just nods again and hangs onto the picture. When she sits back down and nudges her sunglasses back onto her face, Alicia snaps a quick picture of her.

“Hey!” Al argues, reacting way too late to mess up the photo. It’s already printing off. “Your list said _photograph beautiful shit_. That means, like, wildlife and the scenery.”

“It means whatever I want it to mean,” Alicia replies. “I’m the one that’s dying, remember?”

Al grumbles to herself but stops arguing. Alicia watches the photo develop and smiles to herself. Actually, she thinks she’s going to keep this one. She can’t risk Al destroying it. They spend a little longer up at the top, and Alicia finds a few more things to photograph while they’re up there. A squirrel. A particularly pretty patch of purple flowers. Al again, but this time, it’s right after she’s got the backpack back on and the rifle hanging from her shoulder.

“I swear, I’ll push you off this cliff if you take another one of me,” Al threatens, but the way she grins ruins the menacing tone she was going for. Alicia snaps a third one of Al while that grin’s on her face, and Alicia scoops her stuff up and takes off down the mountain before Al can attack her. The way down is a hundred times easier than the way up was, and they reach the bottom in no time. Alicia throws her stuff into the Jeep and claims the driver’s seat before Al even gets there.

“Give me the keys,” Alicia requests. Her eyes flash dangerously. “I want to drive.”

“If we end up in the bottom of that lake –”

“Relax,” Alicia dismisses as Al hops into the passenger’s seat. “I had a license before the world went to shit. I know how to drive a car.”

Al pulls her seatbelt tight. More than once, Alicia nearly tips them, and each time, she laughs hysterically. She whips the Jeep onto the sand and skids to a stop, kicking the sand up into the air. Alicia’s laughter dies out, leaving her out of breath, and she kills the engine, slapping the keys into Al’s palm.

“That was fun,” Alicia says. “I should’ve written _go on a joyride_ on my list, but I got to do it anyway.”

“I think I’m having a heart attack,” Al says.

“Oh, it wasn’t that bad,” Alicia says. “Don’t be a baby.”

Al turns her head to stare at Alicia. Al’s grasping onto the handle hanging beside the door and has been the entire ten minute ride over. Her sunglasses are slipping down the bridge of her nose, and her hair’s all windswept thanks to the open windows. She tries to keep a serious face, though, until Alicia takes another photo of her.

“Alicia!” Al exclaims. She makes a swipe for the camera, but Alicia jumps out of the Jeep and runs off as the picture develops. So now Alicia has four pictures of Al. Alicia has no choice but to return to the Jeep, since her bag and her weapon is there, and she adds the fourth picture to the others.

“Hurry up,” Alicia says. “I’m sweating to death. I want to get in the water.”

“Be careful,” Al warns. “Watch out for any submerged dead.”

Alicia sighs. “If they want to bite me, let them. I’m dead anyway.”

Al presses her lips together, but her sunglasses hide most of the pained look that dances across her face. “You know, you don’t actually know you’re going to die. Not for sure.”

“Al,” Alicia says, slapping her hand against the hood of the Jeep. She thinks better of that, though, because the metal’s hot and burns her hand almost instantly. She hisses and pulls her hand away quickly and struggles to remember her train of thought. “I got the blood of a corpse that’s chock full of radiation all over my face and in my mouth. Face it. I’m a goner.”

“But you haven’t had any symptoms,” Al points out.

“Not yet. It hasn’t been very long, though. Only a couple of days.”

“And we don’t know the dosage of radiation.”

“I’m dying,” Alicia says quietly. “I just know, okay?”

Al shrugs and accepts that answer. She unties her shirt from around her waist and throws it into the Jeep. Alicia doesn’t think anything of it until Al starts unbuckling her belt.

“What are you doing?” Alicia demands. She grabs Al’s wrist to stop her, but Al shakes her off.

“Changing,” Al says. “Duh. We’re on a beach. Didn’t you bring a swimsuit?”

“Yeah,” Alicia says. “But you’re just gonna –”

Al grins. “I don’t have anything to hide. Besides, you’re so sure you’re going to be dead soon anyway. What’s it matter if you see me naked?”

“I hate you,” Alicia grumbles. But she kicks her boots off and sheds her shorts once she’s got her bathing suit handy.

“Hate me all you want,” Al replies. “As long as you’re having fun.”

Alicia smiles to herself, turning her back to Al and swapping her clothes for her bathing suit, quickly. Alicia ties her bikini top securely around her neck and fixes her hair, tying it back up more neatly.

“Hey,” Al calls. “Tie this for me.”

Alicia rolls her eyes but takes ahold of the strings of Al’s swimsuit, knotting them at the back of her neck. Alicia pauses, though, and gently grazes her fingertips against the nape of Al’s neck. She should’ve noticed before, when she put the sunscreen on there, but she hadn’t.

“What’s this?” Alicia asks.

Al squirms away from her touch, grimacing. Her sunglasses are the reflective kind – the ones that don’t let you see the person’s eyes, which is suddenly really annoying. “Don’t worry about it,” Al says quietly. Alicia stares into where she thinks Al’s eyes might be, but she can only see her own face. “Okay?”

Alicia nods, but she’s going to figure out a way to learn the meaning of the three little letters etched into the back of Al’s neck. They’re easy to miss, written in loopy cursive, _DEJ_. It doesn’t obviously mean anything, and Alicia’s best guess is they’re initials. Someone’s initials. It’s definitely not a fresh tattoo by any means, so someone from before all this. But if Al doesn’t want to tell her right now, then that’s fine. She’ll find out eventually.

“So what’s next?” Al asks. “Are you going straight in the water?”

“Aren’t you?” Alicia huffs. “It’s fucking hot.”

Al grins. “So we’re going for number four?”

Alicia’s face heats up again. “No,” she snaps. “Not – not yet.”

“Ah,” Al says. “You want to wait for sundown. Fine with me.”

Alicia’s eyes definitely do _not_ drop to Al’s ass as she heads for the water, and Alicia jogs after her to catch up. The water’s cool but not icy, thanks to the sun, but Alicia’s pretty sure all the sunscreen in the world won’t save her from a sunburn. She’s going to try, anyway. When she gets out of the water, she lets the sun dry her then gets to it with the sunscreen. Al’s still in the water, fully submerged except for her head, because she’s refusing to get her hair wet. As if it’s not already soaked with sweat.

“You’re going to burn, Alicia!” Al shouts from the water. “Might as well accept it!”

In response, Alicia smacks sunscreen onto her cheeks and forcefully rubs it around her face. She motions for Al to get out of the water, and it takes her five minutes to finally make her way back. At first, Alicia refuses to stare. But hey, fuck it. She’s going to die. She might as well indulge herself before it happens. So her eyes shamelessly work their way up from Al’s legs, past her stomach toward her chest, then up to her face once she’s within speaking distance.

“What’s up?” Al says, planting her hands on her hips.

“You look good in black,” Alicia comments. She holds the bottle of sunscreen out to Al while Al works on figuring out how to speak again. “Can you get my back?”

Al starts up by Alicia’s neck, and Alicia holds her ponytail out of the way for her. “I’d be a little worried if you’d had, like, _have sex on the beach_ written on your list or something,” Al jokes.

Alicia busts out laughing. “What?”

“You were staring.”

“So?” Alicia teases, glancing at Al over her shoulder. “I’m not dead yet.”

Al grins, smears sunscreen across Alicia’s lower back. “What? You suddenly into women, Clark?”

Alicia laughs again, and Al’s grin widens. “I don’t know,” Alicia admits. “Why? Am I gonna find out?”

Al laughs this time, finishing up with the sunscreen. “You’re cute,” she says. “So what’re we doing next? We’ve only crossed one thing off.”

Alicia smirks. “You brought the gun?”

“And the ink and gloves,” Al confirms. “This isn’t the safest way to do this, you know.”

“So?” Alicia says. “What’s a little infection?”

Al shakes her head but goes to the Jeep to retrieve the stuff. Alicia, though, follows after her and takes up a spot in the passenger’s seat.

“What’re you doing?” Al asks.

“It’ll be easier to do it here,” Alicia says. “Less sand.”

Al nods. She pulls her sunglasses from her face and grabs the tattoo gun. She snaps the gloves onto her hands and promises she sterilized everything last night. Alicia rests her left arm on the center console and waits, but Al just stares at her.

“What?” Alicia says.

“What do you want?” Al asks.

“Huh?”

Al grins. “You want me to tattoo you, but you don’t know what you want?”

Alicia grins back. “I didn’t really put a lot of thought into it, okay? I just wrote it down and forgot about it.”

Al laughs. “Well, take your time. It’s only –” she checks the watch on her wrist, “two p.m.”

Alicia doesn’t have to think very long. She selects two names to go on her inner wrist, above the heart from Matt that she’d inked there herself. When Al jokingly asks her what kind of font she wants, Alicia just says, “Your handwriting is fine.”

Al shrugs and gets to work. They don’t talk. Mostly, Alicia watches the intense look of concentration on Al’s face, like she’s going to forget how to form letters or something. She’s careful to line everything up properly, keeps a steady hand. Al finishes, wipes an antiseptic over the two names, and leans back to give Alicia a chance to admire her work.

“How is it?” Al asks.

“Perfect,” Alicia murmurs. Alicia sports _Madison_ and _Nick_ on her inner wrist in Al’s neat, uppercase writing, one above the other. Al nods, manages a small smile, and tucks the gun and ink away. She pulls the gloves from her hands and tosses them aside.

“Where’d you get the other one?” Al asks, motioning toward the heart.

“I did it myself,” Alicia informs. “My boyfriend drew it on me right before Los Angeles fell. He died, so I…” Alicia trails off, shrugging. “I did it myself,” she finishes. “And it’s still there. Not too bad, huh?”

“Not bad at all,” Al says. Their eyes lock, and Alicia swallows. The corners of Al’s lips quirk upward, and Alicia manages a shaky smile in return.

“Thanks,” Alicia finally says.

“Of course.”

Alicia grabs her list and a pen.

_~~#5: Get another tattoo~~ _

She reaches back for the Jane Austen novel she’s been meaning to read for ages. Years, literally. Alicia tucks the list in the back of the book, hooks the pen on the back cover.

“Get the scissors, will you?” Alicia asks. Al nods and does that as Alicia returns to the beach. She squints against the sun until her eyes adjust, and she flips the book open, taking a seat in the sand. Al joins her, a blanket from the back of the Jeep slung over one shoulder, scissors in hand. Al spreads the blanket out on the sand, and Alicia shifts onto it, not losing her place in the book.

“You’re sure?” Al asks.

“Just cut it to my shoulders,” Alicia dismisses. “That’s good enough.”

“You trust me?”

“No,” Alicia laughs. “But my hair’s not the most important thing in the world. You did a good job with the tattoo. Just do your best.”

Al pulls Alicia’s hair from its ponytail, and Alicia reads the book as Al attempts to cut her hair. Al grumbles about the wind making it even harder, and Alicia keeps repeating that she doesn’t care, she doesn’t care if it isn’t perfect. It isn’t until she tells Al that Luciana can fix it later that Al really goes for it.

“Done,” Al declares, tossing the scissors aside with the gun barrel and rifle that they haven’t had to use all day. Alicia puts the book down for a moment, runs her hand through her shorter hair, and smiles to herself. It’s nice to have some of that weight gone, and it’s still long enough for her to pull back. “Cross it off,” Al adds.

_~~#6: Cut my hair~~ _

Al throws herself facedown onto the blanket, stretching out. She turns her face in Alicia’s direction, lays her sunglasses next to her face, and closes her eyes. Alicia picks her book back up and says, “Your back’s going to burn.”

“So what?” Al mumbles. “Read your book. I’m gonna get a nap in.”

After Al falls asleep, Alicia takes another picture of her. Maybe it’s a kind of creepy thing to do, but she can’t help herself. She wants to remember the peaceful look on Al’s face for however much longer she’s got. She finishes off the book, crosses it from the list so Al won’t nag her.

_~~#3: Read that Jane Austen book you never got to~~ _

Alicia returns to the Jeep, grabs her notebook, and settles back onto the blanket beside Al. The sun’s intensity has decreased, but it’s still a few hours from sunset. Alicia gets writing, knocking out every letter except for one. That one’s going to have to wait. Al doesn’t need to know she didn’t complete it, though, so she takes it off the list, too.

_~~#7: Write letters~~ _

Alicia sets the notebook aside with the book and lies down on her back, groaning. Al continues to sleep on Alicia’s left, and Alicia turns her head over and stares at her until she begins to stir. Alicia figures the constant staring would rouse her, and she’s right: it only takes a couple minutes before Al’s eyes flutter open.

“What’s going on?” Al mumbles.

“I told you about my tattoo,” Alicia says matter-of-factly. She props herself up briefly until she gets eyes on the small tattoo on the back of Al’s neck. “Are you going to tell me about yours?”

Al grunts and rolls onto her side so she’s facing Alicia, blocking her view of the tattoo. “Is it really that important?” Al asks.

“Yes.” When Al sighs, Alicia reminds, “I’m dying, remember?”

Al chuckles. “You’re going to milk that until you actually die, aren’t you?”

“Yes.”

“Fine,” Al agrees. “They’re initials,” Al says. She puts her sunglasses back on before she continues, propping her head against her hand. She’s probably staring at Alicia, but Alicia can’t really tell; she’s staring into the sunglasses at her own reflection.

“Who’s?” Alicia prompts.

Al smiles wryly. “Someone I loved, way back in the day.”

“Back in the day?”

“She died at the beginning of the outbreak.”

“Oh,” Alicia says. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Al dismisses. “I’ve had the tattoo a long time. Most of the time, I forget about it. You know. Since I can’t see it myself.” Al pauses, inhaling deeply. “What’s left on the list?”

“All the good stuff,” Alicia says, smirking. Al grins back at her and pushes herself up into a sitting position. Alicia sits up, too, and doesn’t argue when Al says they should have dinner. She packed what she could fit, so they eat protein bars and share a bottle of Coke. Once they finish, Alicia heads back into the water as Al gathers their stuff up. Alicia waits until she’s up to her stomach in water before fighting her way out of her bikini bottoms. She flings them back to shore, grinning as Al stares at her in disbelief.

“What are you doing?” Al calls.

Alicia moves further out, bending her knees so her chest is beneath the water line, and unties her top. “I’m crossing off number four!” Alicia shouts. She throws her top to the shore, too, and then realizes maybe she should’ve held onto them. Oh well. She’ll be dead soon anyway. Fuck it.

“I thought you were too shy,” Al laughs, making her way to the water. Alicia keeps herself carefully beneath the water, grinning even though her face blazes red.

“Yeah, well, I guess I’m just full of surprises,” Alicia replies. “I’ve never actually done this before.”

“I didn’t think you had.”

Alicia snorts. “What? You’ve skinny dipped before?”

“Duh,” Al says. “I told you. I know how to show a girl a good time.”

“Gross!”

Al laughs again and grabs Alicia’s bathing suit before it can be swept out into the lake. She throws it farther back then tosses her sunglasses with them. Her bathing suit goes next, and Alicia clamps her hands over her eyes, complaining about Al’s brazenness.

“Oh, shut up,” Al says once she’s in the water. She keeps some distance between her and Alicia, doesn’t want to make her too uncomfortable. She mimics Alicia, keeps herself concealed by the water, and she grins. “You’ve seen a lot worse than my body. In fact, I think I’m pretty hot.”

Alicia laughs and splashes water at Al. “Stop it,” Alicia giggles. “I’m innocent.”

Al throws her head back and laughs. “You are _not_! I know you’ve seen someone else naked before.”

“Only men.”

Al’s eyes roll. “Like that matters.” Alicia splashes her again, and Al pushes her hands through her hair, slicking it back with the water.

“Splash me again, Clark. See what happens.”

Alicia grins, raising her eyebrows. “I’m so scared,” she taunts.

“You should be. I’ll tackle you, and I’m totally naked, Alicia.”

“You won’t,” Alicia dismisses.

“You sure?”

“Yeah,” Alicia says. “Because I’m dying, so stay over there.”

“Alicia!” Al exclaims. “You aren’t dying!”

“But Grace said –”

“Who gives a flying fuck what Grace said?” Al says, shaking her head.

“I got that – that blood in my mouth,” Alicia says weakly.

“So? I’ve gotten lots of nasty shit in my mouth, and I’m still alive. You have no signs of radiation poisoning. Once you show symptoms, I’ll be a little more worried, okay?” Al says.

Alicia inhales deeply. “Then why are you out here doing this with me?” she asks quietly.

Al blinks. “Just in case I’m wrong,” she says.

“You’re getting closer to me,” Alicia points out. “Back off.”

“Sorry,” Al grumbles. “The water’s carrying me this way.”

“Sure,” Alicia teases. Her eyes hone in on something off in the distance. “We’ve got a visitor,” she informs.

“Huh?” Al twists around, stares down the beach at the figure shambling in their direction. “I’ll take care of it,” she dismisses.

“Naked?” Alicia says. “Please don’t –”

“I’ll be careful,” Al promises. “And if you stare at me, I’ll know it.”

“Oh, shut up,” Alicia says. “Put your clothes back on first. He’s far enough away.”

Al makes a beeline for the shore, and Alicia makes sure not to stare. Al gets back into her bathing suit, but that’s it, and before Alicia can yell for her to put something more substantial on, Al grabs the gun barrel and jogs down the beach toward the dead. One swift move, and it drops dead. Alicia takes the opportunity to get out of the water herself and get back into her swimsuit. She goes to the Jeep to grab her list.

_~~#4: Skinny dip~~ _

Al returns with the gun barrel and the rifle, throws them into the back. “You about ready?” Al asks. “The sun’s gonna go down soon.”

“Can we stay?” Alicia asks. “I mean, I know it’ll be dark when we drive back, but I want to watch the sunset.”

Al nods and hooks her sunglasses on the visor above the driver’s seat. “Yeah,” she agrees. “But we’re staying in the Jeep.”

Alicia smiles and lounges back in the passenger’s seat, feet up on the dash. They don’t talk, not even as Alicia takes a picture of the sun setting over the water. She hands that picture off to Al. Alicia gives Al permission to drive off before the sun has completely set, so there’s still some natural light left, and Alicia still crosses it off her list.

_~~#8: Watch the sunset~~ _

Then she realizes she has something else she can cross off.

_~~#2: Photograph beautiful shit~~ _

Alicia naps on the way back, only waking up because it’s suddenly a lot colder than before. She rolls her window up and thinks maybe she should’ve put her clothes back on. Al’s driving in nothing but a bikini, though. She’s even driving barefoot. Al’s got one arm out the window, the other resting on the top of the steering wheel. She glances over as Alicia sits up straight, groaning.

“You good?” Al asks.

“Cold,” Alicia grunts.

“I can –”

“It’s okay,” Alicia says. “I have clothes in my bag.”

She twists around and frees the sweatshirt and sweatpants she’d packed, pulling them on quickly then putting her seatbelt back on. A CD’s playing softly, and it takes Alicia a minute to identify what it is. Maybe she shouldn’t be surprised that Al listens to heavy metal.

“I can roll the window up,” Al offers.

“It’s fine,” Alicia assures her. The sweatshirt’s too big, and she has to roll the sleeves to free her hands. It belonged to Nick. “How are you not cold?” Alicia asks.

Al grins. “Because I’m not a little bitch.”

“Rude.”

Al laughs. “I don’t know. It’s just not cold.”

“Oh my God,” Alicia exclaims. “I _do_ have radiation poisoning!”

Al laughs again then laughs even harder when she sees the indignant look on Alicia’s face. “That’s not a symptom of radiation poisoning,” Al manages to say. “You’re just cold.”

“But you aren’t.”

“So? That doesn’t mean anything,” Al says.

Alicia sighs. “How far out are we?”

Al glances at the time and taps her fingers against the steering wheel. “Less than an hour,” she says.

“Everyone’s going to be pissed,” Alicia says. “We were gone _all_ day.”

“Yeah, but did you have fun?” Al questions.

Alicia smiles. “Yeah. Lots.”

“Then who cares if they’re pissed? Let them be pissed.” Al pauses, rubbing at her neck before she asks, “So how many things are left on your list?”

Alicia has the thing memorized. There’s really no need for the actual paper list, but she pulls it out anyway and counts the remaining items. “Three. We’ll be home close to ten, right? You think everyone will still be up?”

“Yeah,” Al says.

“You think there’s time for a movie?”

“I bet John wouldn’t mind getting one going.”

“If we do that, there’s only two things left,” Alicia declares. She folds the list back up and shoves it into the pocket of her sweatpants.

“Yeah,” Al says. “So, uh, do you want to talk about those two things?”

Alicia winces. “I mean, not really.”

“Because I bet I can still help you,” Al says. “I know Victor’s got some liquor stored away somewhere.”

Alicia smiles. “Yeah, I know where it’s at, but I’m not really up for drinking myself into a coma tonight.”

“Then tomorrow night,” Al suggests. “We can steal from Victor’s stash and hide up on the roof.”

“I’ll think about it,” Alicia agrees. An odd silence falls between them as they round a sharp bend and Al runs over a half-eaten corpse, reminding Alicia that their beach day is not something they’re likely to ever do again. Even if she lives past the next few days – or even years. She doesn’t know how long radiation poisoning takes, or even how much radiation she was exposed to. Grace wasn’t exactly super helpful about that, because it’s not like she’s a doctor.

“You know,” Alicia says abruptly before the silence gets too awkward. “Don’t, um, don’t worry about that other thing left on the list. You don’t have to – I mean, it’s a stupid one, anyway.”

“I don’t think it’s stupid,” Al says. “I get it.”

“It’s pretty stupid. There’s not even anyone – I don’t know why I wrote it down.”

Al hums in acknowledgment but just says, “If you don’t want to listen to metal, you can change the CD.”

“It’s fine.”

Al glances over. “Don’t get all depressed on me now, Clark,” Al says. “We’ve had a nice day so far.”

“The day’s over,” Alicia mutters. She crosses her arms over her chest, sinks down in the seat. “And I’m probably dying of radiation poisoning.”

“One,” Al says, “it’s not midnight, so the day isn’t over. Two, you thinking you’re dying of radiation poisoning is worse than when June was convinced I had cholera or dengue fever. I had neither; I’m pretty sure it was mild antifreeze poisoning, but don’t tell June that. She really wants to believe it was cholera.”

Alicia cracks a smile. “It could’ve been worse,” she murmurs. “Could’ve been dysentery.”

“Yeah, well, not too far off, but I’m pretty sure dysentery would’ve killed me.” Al pauses, drumming her fingers on the steering wheel once more. “You know, I really don’t think you’re going to die of radiation poisoning.”

“You’re not a doctor.”

“Yeah, but I’ve seen a lot of shit in my thirty years of life,” Al replies. “I think we’d know by now if you were in serious danger.”

“Well, if I’m not about to die, at least I got to have a really amazing fucking day. And if I am about to die, then it was one hell of a way to go out.”

Al grins. “It’s not like we did anything too crazy.”

“Skinny dipping in the middle of the apocalypse is kind of crazy.”

“That’s debatable.”

They playfully argue until they pull up at the factory. Before Al’s even got the Jeep parked, June comes running out. Al heaves a sigh and pokes her head out the window, handling June so Alicia doesn’t have to. Alicia listens quietly from the passenger’s seat as June and Al go back and forth.

“All you said was _Alicia and I are going out, be back later._ That doesn’t tell us anything! We had no idea where you were, no idea if you’d come back!”

“I know,” Al says. “And I’m sorry, but – come on, June. I did it for Alicia. She thinks she’s dying of radiation poisoning.”

There’s a pause. “We don’t know –”

“Yes, but just in case. She had a great time. Ask her.”

June sighs. “I’m sure you guys had a blast, but we’ve all been worrying –”

“Yes, and I’m sorry, and I’ll do all the nasty chores for a week to make up for it, okay? But for now, do you think you could ask John to get a movie going? It’s on Alicia’s list.”

“John’s already setting one up,” June replies. “So give him ten minutes. I’m sure he’ll figure it out again.”

“We’ll meet you inside,” Al promises. Alicia watches as June heads back in, and Al pulls her head back in the window before rolling it up. “See? I took care of it,” Al says. “You ready to go in?”

“Yeah, but you should probably put some clothes on.”

“Right,” Al says. “Clothes. Sure.”

Alicia waits while Al pulls her pants and the button down over her bathing suit. She puts her boots on as an afterthought then takes their backpacks and weapons into the factory. Everyone bombards them with _we were so worried_ and _Alicia what happened to your hair_ and _what did you guys even do and where did you go_ , and Al deflects most of their questions, saying she’ll tell them tomorrow, but she promises Alicia she’s going to feed them a lie when she thinks of one.

“You don’t have to lie,” Alicia says. She grabs them two chairs in the back as John struggles to get the projector working. Al drops down into one, sits with her legs spread and leans back, stretching her arms out.

“Nah, I’m gonna lie,” Al says. “This day belongs to us and only us.”

Alicia smiles, jams her hands into her pockets, and she curls her hand around the list. John gets the movie going, and everyone tunes in to some old black and white film – something John picked, since it’s his turn. But Alicia doesn’t even mind. When she leans her shoulder into Al’s, Al doesn’t hesitate to lift her arm and rest it around the back of Alicia’s chair. Alicia glances over at Al every couple of minutes, but each time, Al’s really engrossed in the film. Like, she’s really focused on it. Alicia, though, finds herself more invested in looking at Al than looking at the screen.

Her friends make for a fun audience, though. They always laugh at the right time, and Victor always laughs a little longer than everyone else. During scary movies, June always screams at least once and normally ends up burying her face into John’s shirt. Luciana and Charlie always have something witty to say to diffuse the tension or make everyone laugh harder. And damn it, Alicia really hopes she isn’t going to die, because she’s going to miss this. She’s going to miss every last one of her friends, even Morgan, who kind of got her into this situation in the first place.

When the movie ends, Al takes her arm back, and Alicia resists the urge to grab onto her to stop it from happening. But Al springs to her feet and holds her arm out, grinning goofily. “Can I walk you to your room, madam?” Al asks.

Alicia rolls her eyes but can’t stop herself from laughing, grabbing onto Al’s arm. She follows Al through the factory to her bedroom, holding her arm the whole time, and they don’t say anything until they reach Alicia’s room. They don’t have to. Alicia reluctantly lets go, a smile lingering on her face, and Al smiles right back.

Al reaches into her pocket and pulls something small and shiny out. “A penny for your thoughts?” Al says.

“Huh?”

Al holds up a penny then drops it into Alicia’s palm. “I don’t know,” Al says. “I found it the other day and picked it up. You know that whole superstition about pennies being lucky.”

“Yeah, but –”

“What are you thinking?” Al interrupts. “Because it looks like your brain’s trying really hard, just based on your face.”

“Don’t go yet?” Alicia requests. “I mean, it’s probably after midnight, but –”

“Who cares what time it is?” Al dismisses. “You want me to stay, I’ll stay.”

Alicia pushes the door open and steps into her room, suddenly feeling strangely self-conscious. She pulls the list from her pocket then smooths it out on her desk. She’s aware of Al’s eyes on her back, and Alicia only vaguely hears the door shut.

_~~#10: Watch a movie with my friends~~ _

“So,” Al says, lingering near the doorway with her hands jammed into her pants pockets. “If you want to get drunk tomorrow, I’ll make it happen.”

Alicia nods and turns away from the list, leaning back against the desk. “Yeah,” Alicia agrees. “But I’m going to have to sleep for twelve hours first. I’m beat.”

“Yeah,” Al breathes. “Me too. Long day.”

“But it was the good kind of long day,” Alicia says. “I’ve had a lot of bad long days recently, so…thanks. Really. You didn’t have to do that.”

Al waves her hand in dismissal then runs it through her hair. “I wanted to,” she says. “Just in case you’re about to keel over,” she jokes.

“No,” Alicia says quietly. “I feel great, actually.”

“Great? Well that’s good. I feel like the back of my neck’s sunburned, actually.”

Alicia laughs and takes a step away from the desk, toward Al. “Yeah,” Alicia says. “I didn’t get my legs good enough with the sunscreen. The backs of my thighs are fried.”

“Ouch,” Al says. She, too, takes a step forward. Her eyes flick toward the desk, where the list is at, and Al takes another step. “You know,” Al murmurs, “it’s totally cool if you say no, but if you want, I could, uh, I could help you with number nine.”

Alicia nods without hesitation. “Yeah. Yeah, I think you should.”

Alicia reaches up, pushing both her hands into Al’s hair and pulls her down at the same time that Al grabs at her waist, slipping her hands beneath Alicia’s sweatshirt and pressing her palms against Alicia’s back. Alicia moans then mentally chastises herself for being so easy, but _shit_ , why has she been kissing boys all her life? Better yet, why didn’t she just kiss Al when they reached the top of the mountain? Or on the beach? Or any time before right this second, since Alicia’s still not entirely convinced she’s not dying, and she’s going to be _so pissed_ if she only gets to kiss Al this once.

Alicia pulls back, tugging at the bottom of her sweatshirt, but Al breathes, “Wait, slow down.”

“What?” Alicia hisses, yanking the sweatshirt over her head. “Are you gonna make me go write down that I want to have sex with you before I die?”

“Shut up,” Al laughs, but Alicia’s already untying her bikini top, and Al figures she better catch up and shed some clothes of her own.

But then Alicia pauses, half naked, and says, “You know, don’t have sex with me just because I might be dying.”

“Oh my God,” Al groans, flinging her shirt across the room. “Shut up, okay? Just shut up.”

Alicia presses her hand against the center of Al’s chest, dodging her next attempt to kiss her, and says, “Okay, but just real quick, confirm you’re not doing this because I may or may not be dying.”

“I’m not doing this because you may or may not be dying,” Al says flatly. “I promise. Are we good now? Or should I put my clothes back on so we can sit down and talk through all the –”

Alicia kisses her to shut her up, leads Al back toward the bed, and silently hopes the walls aren’t thin.

Alicia jolts awake, sun streaming through the window, because something moved. Someone. Alicia looks down at the body beneath her – the very naked body that Alicia got _very_ familiar with last night – then sighs. She drops her head back down onto the pillow, hand pressed on the center of Al’s chest, and she carefully pulls her leg back from its resting spot across both of Al’s legs. Al shifts again beneath her but still doesn’t wake up, and Alicia hopes her sex hair isn’t nearly as bad as Al’s. June’s definitely going to be asking some uncomfortable questions at breakfast. If they haven’t already missed breakfast.

The clock on Alicia’s wall confirms that they have not missed breakfast – breakfast won’t be for at least another hour. Someone’s going to notice that they both slept in Alicia’s room, though, and if Al doesn’t find a way to fix her hair, they’re going to be the hot gossip of the factory for the next few months.

Alicia stands without waking Al and heads to her dresser for clean clothes, but she only bothers to put on underwear and a sweatshirt she’d stolen from Al within their first week at the factory. She doubts Al even noticed, honestly. Alicia takes a seat at her desk and grabs the nearest pen. First, she deals with her list.

~~_#9: Kiss someone_ ~~

_And then some_ Alicia writes after it, just as a little joke to herself. She bets the eleventh item, _get drunk_ , will be handled later in the day, and then she supposes she’ll have to look back at her initial list and pick some of the more ridiculous goals to achieve. Until then, Alicia sets the list aside and pulls out a fresh sheet of paper. The words come a lot easier than she expects, and she fills a page by the time Al stirs and figures out that she's not in her own bed. Alicia hears Al’s feet hit the floor, but she jumps when Al slaps her hands against the back of her chair and lowers her chin onto the top of Alicia’s head.

“What’re you doing?” Al mumbles sleepily.

“Don’t look!” Alicia exclaims, covering the sheet of paper with her arms. “It’s yours.”

“I thought you wrote all your letters yesterday,” Al yawns. “You crossed it off.”

“Except yours,” Alicia says. “I wanted to wait until the day ended, but I didn’t have a chance to do it last night.”

Al chuckles and backs away from the desk. “No, you didn’t,” she agrees. “We should do that again sometime. You know, if you don’t die of radiation poisoning.”

“Don’t remind me,” Alicia grumbles. “Seriously, or I might cry.”

“Don’t cry,” Al groans, pressing the heels of her hands against her eyes. “I can’t deal with that right now, man. Is it worse if I go out there naked or in last night’s clothes?”

“Naked,” Alicia says. “Way worse.”

Al scoops up her clothes and makes a sound of disgust while Alicia wraps up her letter. “Do I go commando for two minutes or put this bathing suit back on?”

“Just go commando,” Alicia dismisses. “It’s laundry day.”

“You’re right,” Al says. She pauses as Alicia pushes away from the desk and makes her way over. Alicia smiles, and Al says, “What?”

“You have really bad sex hair.”

Al groans again and pushes her hands through her hair even though it’s useless. “You better hope no one sees me, or they’re all going to know we fucked, and they’re going to talk about it for the next six months.”

“Six?” Alicia snorts. “Try eight or nine. Or until something even crazier happens.”

Al slides into the button down but doesn’t bother to button it, even though she has nothing beneath it. “So if they ask,” Al says, “do we tell them we fucked or do we lie?”

“Oh, we lie,” Alicia says. “Right through our teeth, until they catch us.”

Al grins and holds her arms up as Alicia steps forward, wrapping her arms around Al’s waist and resting her head against her chest. Al drops her chin against the top of Alicia’s head again and holds on tight.

“So we’re definitely getting drunk on the roof tonight,” Al says. She pauses. “Have you ever had sex on a roof? I’ve never had sex on a roof.”

“Make sure you bring a blanket or something.”

“I’m bringing the booze,” Al laughs. “You bring the blanket.”

Alicia closes her eyes and inhales deeply, grasping onto the soft fabric of Al’s shirt. “Fine,” she agrees. “But the door to the roof better lock. We don’t need to scar anyone for life.”

Al hums in agreement. “So when do I get to read that letter?”

“When I die.”

Al huffs. “That could take forever.”

Alicia smiles. “I hope so.”

**Author's Note:**

> So this was my response to the whole situation in 5x07. I decided to turn it into something good.
> 
> Thanks for reading! I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments, and I'll respond as quickly as possible!


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